Fraudulent Findings and Laboratory Lies: The Science Scandals Quiz

Scientists rely on painstaking studies and years of research to support life-changing contributions to medicine, technology and other scientific fields. In some case, however, the lure of a Nobel Prize or publishing glory can lead even the most brilliant scientist astray. Take our quiz to see how much you know about the biggest lies, scams and scandals in the field of science.

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Question 1 of 10

A fraudulent 1998 study published in medical journal The Lancet claimed that certain vaccines could contribute to this condition:

autism

Andrew Wakefield's study on autism and vaccines led some to skip the MMR vaccine, resulting in a spike in measles cases. The study was retracted in 2010, and no one has been able to replicate the results since that time.

blindness

Down syndrome

Question 2 of 10

António Egas Moniz received a now-controversial Nobel Prize in 1949 for perfecting what procedure?

breast augmentation

heart transplant

lobotomy

Once celebrated as a cure for certain types of mental illness, the lobotomy quickly fell out of favor as doctors discovered its many side effects.

Question 3 of 10

South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-suk received worldwide acclaim in 2004 when he claimed to have accomplished this fantastic feat:

cloned human embryos

Woo-suk claimed to have cloned a human embryo -- a controversial subject on its own, if it were true. Turns out, it was all a lie, leading Woo-suk to lose his job in 2006. He was convicted of fraud and sentenced to two years in prison in 2009.

cloned a sheep

cloned himself

Question 4 of 10

Yale researcher Stanley Milgram's claim to fame was a series of studies where he used electric shocks to test this trait:

depression

obedience to authority

Milgram convinced test subjects to administer to powerful electric shocks to others in his studies on obedience to authority. (In reality there was no electricity but actors pretended they were being shocked.) His deceptive research methods have continued to prove controversial and were banned by the American Psychological Association in 1973.

happiness

Question 5 of 10

What nickname was given to the so-called "missing link" found in England in 1912?

Piltdown Man

In 1912, archaeologists discovered a skull they dubbed "Piltdown Man," which many believed to be the missing link between apes and humans. Carbon dating later revealed that the skull, made up of a human skull filled with teeth from an orangutan, was no more than 600 years old.

Cardiff Giant

King Kong

Question 6 of 10

British scientist Ian Wilmut faced controversy when he cloned a sheep by this name in 1996:

Polly

Dolly

Dolly the sheep brought Wilmut both fame and a knighthood, yet he later admitted that two-thirds of the work required to complete the project was actually performed by co-researcher Keith Campbell, who's still waiting for his knighthood.

Molly

Question 7 of 10

Watson, Crick and Franklin? Many believe Rosalind Franklin should have received the Nobel Prize for her work on this topic:

DNA

Watson and Crick received the Nobel Prize in 1962 for their work on the structure of DNA. Though Franklin provided much of the background and inspiration for their discovery, she died in 1958. Since the Nobel Committee forbids awarding prizes posthumously, Franklin never received the recognition that many feel she deserves.

cloning

cancer

Question 8 of 10

Cello Energy promised biofuel made from hay and wood pulp, but the samples the company produced were actually made from this:

human remains

cow dung

petroleum

Cello Energy promised more than 70 million gallons (265 million liters) of biofuel, but samples provided by the company were actually made from petroleum. A federal judge slapped the company with a $10 million fine for fraud in 2009, and the firm went bankrupt the next year after falling far short of its targets.

Question 9 of 10

What did Henrietta Lacks contribute to science in 1951?

her fortune

her home

her cells

Doctors secretly harvested cancer cells from Lacks in 1951 and have used these samples in more than 74,000 studies since then. Lacks was never informed, and her family didn't find out the truth until 1973.

Question 10 of 10

D. Carleton Gajdusek, who won the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1976, was also known for this later in life:

pedophilia

Despite his great work on mad cow disease and other topics, Gajdusek's legacy was tarnished by a 1997 conviction for molestation. Even after his trial, he was unrepentant regarding his pedophilia, feeling himself to be the victim of prudish policies in the U.S.